


A Father's Love

by Queenoftheskittleholics



Category: Ever After High
Genre: And Raven deserves to be happy, Gen, Implied/Referenced Animal Abuse, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, implied/referenced eating disorder, the Evil Queen is awful
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-07
Updated: 2017-01-07
Packaged: 2018-09-15 09:17:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,076
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9228488
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Queenoftheskittleholics/pseuds/Queenoftheskittleholics
Summary: The Good King watches his younger daughter Raven growing up.





	

When the Good King learned that the Evil Queen, his wife, was pregnant, he told himself he should not get too attached to their daughter. She would be dangerous, a villain, evil. However, he knew he was too softhearted of a man to do that. As soon as little Raven was placed in his arms, and looked at him with her big violet eyes, his heart melted.  
Raven began showing talent in magic early, which delighted the Evil Queen and worried the Good King. But she was a well behaved child, rarely getting angry or causing trouble. He knew he should leave her raising to the Evil Queen, but he felt his heart drop as he watched her walk hand in hand with the woman he had come to detest. Everytime Raven asked him about something she had overheard in of the Queen's war meetings or came back smelling like the mixtures from her workshop, he couldn't pretend to himself he wasn't bothered. And when he noticed her wincing when every time she said 'sorry' the Good King had to wonder if maybe this was wrong after all. Even more worryingly, she would only eat very little, such as just a sandwich for dinner. He had a sneaking suspicion that the Evil Queen's controlling nature and vanity had extended to Raven's appearance as well. All the conversations he had with the Evil Queen were arguments now, mostly her yelling at him and sometimes he would yell back. They were arguments about Raven mostly, but he knew they would never have been happy as husband and wife. So finally, they agreed to split the castle between them.  
His older daughter, now known as Snow White like her mother before her, came to visit with her own little girl. Her name was Apple, and she bounded energetically over to where Raven stood behind the Good King.  
"Hello, I'm Apple! I'm going to be the next Snow White!" She declared. "What's your name?"  
But before Raven could answer, Snow called out "Apple! You are not to talk with her. Come back here please." Apple looked confused, but obediently walked back to her mother. Snow looked at Raven with disdain, and the Good King wondered where he had gone wrong raising her.  
"Listen, Raven, will you go play in your room?" He asked her. Raven looked hurt, but nodded and left. The look on her face when he later explained that people might not like her because she was evil broke his heart.  
When Raven turned six, he got her a puppy, to her delight. She named him Prince and declared she loved him. When she returned later from her mother's side of the castle, she stood stiffly in front of his chair. For a brief second, the Good King wondered if she had always been so thin. He motioned for her to come sit on his lap and she immediately smiled and hopped up. Then he realized he didn't see Prince.  
"Raven, where is Prince?" The Good King asked. The little girl's eyes widened.  
"Momma. She... she did something to him." She said. He felt his anger rise. What had she done this time? "She turned him into a bone rat."  
"A bone rat?!" He cried, and Raven flinched. "I'm sorry, it's not your fault." She looked up at him.  
"I didn't like it. I was scared. Of it... of her. I wanted to cry but I'm evil and evil people don't cry." She stated. "But... do I have to be be evil? Do I have to be like her?" As she looked hopefully up at him, the full force of how unfair it all was truly hit him.  
But instead of saying anything about how everyone has to play their parts, he merely said "No. No you don't." She smiled, and he knew he'd have to tell her the truth another day.  
School started soon after, and it was not easy for Raven. None of the other children played with her. She came home once or twice with a 'kick me I'm evil' sign taped to her back. Raven kept to herself for the most part.  
"I hope that her Good King isn't as pathetic an excuse for a man as you are!" The Evil Queen snapped at him after one of their arguments. The Good King was startled at this reminder of the other requirement of Raven's role. Becoming Apple, or rather, the future Snow White’s stepmother. This required two things the Good King could not bear. His older daughter to die, and his younger daughter to marry her husband. He remembered his own wedding to the Evil Queen, and his discomfort at how young she had been. But he had been foolish back then, more accepting. So he dutifully married her anyway. The Good King thought of Snow's husband. A good man to be sure... but he could not picture them happy together. But then, he ruefully reminded himself, Raven was never meant to be happy.  
It was soon after that the Evil Queen moved to invade Wonderland. This proved to be her undoing, and she was imprisoned. The castle settled into a a calm sort of quiet, like all the tension had been released. Which in a way, it had. Raven was happier with the Evil Queen gone. She still winced when she apologized and didn't eat much despite his and Cook's best efforts. But she made two close friends in Cedar Wood and Maddie Hatter, and started playing guitar. So the Good King was glad that for now, at least, she could be happy.  
Soon it was her year to pledge, and he was worried sick over it. But then he started hearing from an increasingly frustrated Headmaster Grimm. Apparently, Raven was asking about not signing, and claiming not to be evil. The Good King felt something like relief. Raven started telling him how her year was going. She'd made a few more friends in Cerise Hood and Dexter Charming. Most of the other students were somewhat friendly now too. And then when he'd heard about Legacy Day, that she had refused to sign, he felt very proud. Even more so when he heard other students were following her. And when she told him that she was going out with Dexter and how sweet he was and that he made her really happy, he was glad. His daughter could finally have her happy ending.

**Author's Note:**

> I took things like Raven's eating habits and the story about the puppy from the book. I had a lot of feels and I want her to be happy. Also stupid title is stupid but I couldn't think of anything better


End file.
